August 27, 2023 Hi, welcome back to Insider Today’s Sunday edition, a roundup of some of our top stories of the week. I’m Cadie Thompson, an executive editor in Insider’s business division, filling in for Matt Turner. Let’s get started. On the agenda today:  Hidden investors took over a leading prison healthcare company.  It’s too early to declare victory over recession threats. Ryan Tolkin notched big returns for the hedge fund Schonfeld as a young exec. Now the CEO is cutting back. Claims of theft, embezzlement, and abuse at a Michelin-starred restaurant.  But first: Bosses are getting aggressive about workers coming back to the office.    — Cadie Thompson   If this was forwarded to you, sign up here.

DISPATCH RIP WFH Michael Kovac/Getty Images Corporate America is ratcheting up its battle against remote work. This week, Goldman Sachs cracked the whip and sternly reminded employees they’re required to be at their desks five days a week. (CEO David Solomon is known to loathe remote work and has been vocal for more than a year about getting folks back, but it appears the company is now doubling down on its strict attendance policy.) Other major companies, such as Amazon, Meta, and Snap, have told workers to return to the office or risk losing their jobs. None of these companies, though, have mandated a five-day schedule — at least not yet. But Goldman’s push to go back to the office full time raised the stakes and could give more corporations the bravado to demand the same.  Corporate giants including Amazon, Meta, and Goldman have said they want people back to help improve collaboration and culture, but some experts say these policies could just be a way for work-obsessed CEOs to claw back power from white-collar employees. Either way, the whole return-to-office crackdown has stirred up some drama, caused some employees to quit, and ignited a conversation about productivity paranoia. And something tells me this battle will get a whole lot uglier after Labor Day weekend. So sit back, folks; it should be an interesting fourth quarter.

THIS WEEK'S TOP READS Hidden investors took over Corizon William Kelly is one of at least 475 people with active suits against Corizon claiming negligent care. All are now stayed. Sylvia Jarrus for Insider Hidden investors took over a leading prison healthcare company. Corizon Health has hundreds of active lawsuits against it alleging medical negligence. But they've all been paused after the company split and filed for bankruptcy — a controversial move that protects Corizon's assets from these legal claims. Johnson & Johnson tried this new tactic two years ago. But no court has clearly ruled on its legality. Dive into the investigation here.

Recession threat Tyler Le/Insider Wall Street is ready to throw a parade for the US economy celebrating the end of recession worries. Not so fast, Insider’s William Edwards writes. There are still plenty of warning signs that a downturn could be on the way, from a rise in credit-card delinquencies to a fall in manufacturing output. At the core of the still very real worries is the Federal Reserve’s onslaught of interest-rate increases over the past 16 months. So far, their impact hasn't been economy-shattering, but according to economists and market analysts, we’re not out of the woods yet. Here’s why recession is still a big threat.

Growing pains at Schonfeld Bloomberg/Getty Images; Jenny Chang-Rodriguez/Insider Ryan Tolkin was viewed as a wunderkind when he helped Schonfeld Strategic Advisors notch big returns early in his career as a young executive.  In Tolkin’s first three full years as chief investment officer (a job he got at just 26 years old), he posted average annual returns of 31%. By 2016, the family office opened to outside capital, and the good times continued for Tolkin and company.  But Schonfeld’s rapid growth is showing signs of slowing amid sluggish returns, including flat year-to-date performance for two of its funds through July.  People who work with the company, meanwhile, say Tolkin’s rising star may have been aided by what they understand to be his familiallike ties with the firm’s founder, Steve Schonfeld. The uphill battle at Schonfeld.

A Michelin-starred restaurant’s downfall Spencer Platt/Getty Images Guests would book reservations for Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare months in advance. Yet it quietly ceased operations in July amid an ugly — and previously not reported — legal battle between the chef and Brooklyn Fare’s owner. Claims of theft, embezzlement, and abuse shut down the legendary Michelin-starred restaurant. Interviews with more than 10 people associated with the restaurant and court documents depicted a battle of egos. Go behind the scenes of what happened.

THIS WEEK'S QUOTE "For any 'Zoomies' who feel like this is not a company I want to work for, absolutely OK. We wish you all the best.” — Eric Yuan, the CEO of Zoom, giving his blessing to any employees who want to leave.

ICYMI More of this week’s top reads: There's a looming crisis that's going to crush homeowners from coast-to-coast. Tech's broken promises: Streaming, Ubers, and the cloud are all expensive. How Merve Emre became the hottest — and most divisive — name in literary criticism. Private lenders have left millions of college students with no hope for the future. Infillion emerges as a buyer for the bankrupt adtech company MediaMath. The most active venture-capital investor in fintech startups has faced a phishing attack, seen a wave of exits, and has SEC whistleblower complaints. Shopify plans to cut a key benefit for 16,000 of its highest-paying subscribers, a leaked email shows.